04/01/10 - Online Workshop: Does Size Matter- Yes- Big City Cop - Small Town Cop with Phyllis Middleton and Kathy Bennett

Murder One - April

Title: Does Size Matter? Yes! Big City Cop - Small Town Cop

Instructor: Phyllis Middleton and Kathy Bennett

Class Description: If you're writing a cop or detective story one thing you have to consider is the size of the department where your character(s) work. While there are many aspects of police work that are fairly standard, there are some significant differences between the way large and small agencies operate. In creating your characters and their worlds, you need to have insight into some of the variations to assure your readers aren't throwing your book across the room for lack of credibility. The topics we'll investigate, and the differences they encompass are:

• Personnel
• Officer training
• Officer duties
• Female officer acceptance
• Inter-personal relationship policies
• Work schedules
• Equipment available
• Weaponry
• Crime scenes
• Working with other agencies
• Politics

And yes, we'll even cover some similarities

Instructor Bio: Kathy Bennett has been a Los Angeles Police Officer for nineteen years and is currently assigned as a Senior Lead Officer. She is responsible for crime and quality of life issues within approximately five square miles of the San Fernando Valley. Kathy's career with the LAPD began in 1973 as a civilian employee, but after becoming a sworn police officer, most of her career has been spent in a patrol car. She's also been a Firearms Instructor at the LAPD Police Academy, a crime analyst in the "War Room", a Field Training Officer, worked undercover in various assignments and is a certified DARE instructor. She's been named Officer of the Quarter twice, and Officer of the Year once.
Kathy has written two romantic suspense manuscripts and is currently working on her third book. Find out more about Kathy at: http://www.kathybennett.com/

While employed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation at the age nineteen, Phyllis Middleton was trained in the Science of Fingerprints. This training included the classification, comparison and search methods used by FBI and known throughout the USA.
Once returning to her home in Colorado, she was a Deputy Sheriff for the Pueblo County Sheriff's Department and specialized in crime scene investigation and evidence processing. Certified in Pueblo District and County Courts, Phyllis testified in a number of cases as an expert in the field of fingerprints. While as the Sheriff's Department, she branched out in Patrol and Investigations; as well as being a member of the Search and Rescue Squad, State Disaster Team and becoming an Emergency Medical Technician and Certified Police Instructor.
Phyllis also worked as a Kentucky Police Officer and finally rounding out twenty years as a Senior Criminal/Civil Investigator with the Denver Coroner's Office her last six years of active service.

Since marrying and moving to Texas, Phyllis no longer works as an active law enforcement officer, although volunteers her time to her local police department. She writes mystery / suspense / action adventure with romantic elements.

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